What to Expect When You’ve Been Arrested For OWI

Have you been arrested for OWI? If so, you might be wondering what happens next. The truth is that what happens next is going to be dependent on what has happened in the past. If this is your first OWI arrest, your penalties are going to be much better than if this is your third or worse. For example, a first time OWI conviction will often land you fines in the neighborhood of $500 or less, but this doesn’t include the lawyer’s fees you’ll be responsible for when you hire him or her to represent you in your case. And yes, you will need legal representation. OWI is a crime and you will need a criminal defense attorney to represent you if you plan to come out with the best outcome possible.

You will also face the potential of having your license suspended and even a few days in jail, but usually only if you don’t have an attorney or your attorney isn’t of a better caliber.

Of course, if this isn’t your first rodeo, you can expect much harsher penalties. On your second conviction, you can most likely expect to face up to a year in jail as well as up to $1,000 plus court costs, lawyers’ fees, a suspension of your driver’s license for up to two years and maybe even a little community service. On your third conviction, you can also expect to get about a year in jail, but instead of the mandatory 90 days you have to spend for round two, you can expect to stay at least 6 months of it. You will also pay the other fines, have to spend time in a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility for 90 days and lose your license for 3 years. A fourth conviction takes you from a misdemeanor to a felony and puts you into an entirely new category of penalties that will simply ruin your life.

In short, getting behind the wheel of your car after a night of drinking or doing drugs is simply not a good idea. It can not only put the squeeze on your finances, it can jeopardize your ability to conduct business as a business owner. This is because arrest records are considered public record and are often profiled on various websites, making it easy for customers to find the arrest records of business owners in their area. You can learn more about these online records here: http://www.bustedmugshots.com/indiana/columbia-city/marchelle-marie-lamaster/94361491 . Business owners are losing customers at alarming rates due to this because customers don’t want to do business with individuals who have a penchant for breaking the law.

Many people have learned this the hard way. They have been arrested and convicted of OWI on many different occasions and have faced or are facing very stiff penalties for existing and new convictions. Click here to learn more: http://marcellelamaster.com.